Eternal
by F Y E.enchanted
Summary: "Don't cry; I'm here." Twisting around, she found a light. In the light was a hand that she took a hold of, and was forever saved.
1. A Pair of Ninja and Blue Eyes

**Summary:**

**"Don't cry; I'm here." Twisting around, she found a light. In the light was a hand that she took a hold of, and was forever saved.**

**A/N:**

**First things first, I changed Mori's name because it wasn't Japanese. So it's now Akane because it means "brilliant red."**

**Okie dokie, on to the real A/N! I'm sorry I stopped writing Eternal before—really, really, really sorry, folks! I don't know what got into me all of a sudden to make me want to write it again too. And I don't mean that in a bad way, though; I just never thought I would continue it. Strange…**

**Oh, I'm adding this new feature, I might add it to my other story too, and it's at the end of the story before the second A/N. It's basically the song of the day (mostly a song I'm listening to at the moment or something that helped me get in the mood or inspired me in some way). And they're good songs too!**

**Disclaimer:**

**All the Naruto characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto! Akane and Yuki fully MY property and I love them! Haha, that was unnecessary.**

**So, read on!**

* * *

><p>Eternal<p>

Chapter 1: A Pair of Ninja and Blue Eyes

She ran as fast as she could, which wasn't much. She didn't even have to look over her shoulder to know _his_ men were following—coming closer and closer with each passing second. And she also knew she wouldn't last long due to her faults, for she was a very clumsy girl; and that was the new trait that served as a reason for her not being able to train. Thus she wasn't in perfect shape.

Just then, she heard yelling from behind. It was _him_. "Don't let her escape." His voice wasn't loud and panting, like her breathing, because he wasn't even running, but she heard it clearly. The reason was because she was so used to it, having known him all her life, and so that tone of his was all too familiar, along with the glint of his glasses.

That was when the tips of her feet sunk into the soil beneath her and her clumsy self fell forward. On the way down, she made a soft 'oomph' sound, her glasses landing not a long way away from her. She squinted to focus around herself, but she still couldn't clearly see the oncoming ninja. She tried slapping the ground to find her glasses, which she thought was the best thing to do at the moment. She knew she wasn't going to get away now, and for some reason it seemed possible back in the village she just left. And she knew she wouldn't be able to escape again after this.

"I-I was lucky this ti-me." She said. By now the fast and skilled ninja stood over her body, and trying for some hope she wished would come, she shouted the loudest her lungs could make her, "H-help! S-somebo-!"

"Urusai!" Called one of the ninja. The girl struggled but the strong grips of the ninja pulling her up were overpowering her and she could not do anything but scream little sounds and thrash her head this way and that. One of the ninja kicked her on her back, setting her anything but gently back on the ground. She moaned in pain, but felt a little comforted when she felt the cold metal of her glasses. She slowly forced her body to painfully move and put them on, but after her eyesight had been regained, she finally ceased struggling. There were too many of them.

"That's a good girl." Called the voice of her nightmare, now standing before her with an evil grin plastered to his face. "Take her to the hideout, I'm going back. And make sure you don't lose her this time."

The ninja obeyed his command and one of them picked the girl up and started across the forest. Every part of her body hurt; she even felt a headache coming on. Slowly, she regained some of her strength, and with all of it, tried to elbow the man holding her. He let out a small cry of pain and dropped her on the ground. She hit the soil hard, but she had used all her energy on getting here and 'fighting' that she couldn't even roll to another position to stop the pain, only cower slightly. The other men quickly reciprocated and one man hit her upside the head, reached to help up the slightly hurt ninja and soon she was being held again, by another servant. The one she had hit was not too far away, though, and he held her glance, glaring. She couldn't even manage to scream help anymore, instead she tried her hardest to lean her body downwards so when she fell through his arms, she might yelp and, hopefully, someone would hear. But it hadn't worked.

And that's when her savior showed up. At first she hadn't even known he was there, but after the man she was watching fell forward on his face, with blood spilling from his stomach, she took a peak around to see what had caused such a chance in balance. There stood a man about the same height as the man who'd just retreated a while ago. Like _him_, the man before her had white hair, but this one had a mask on his face, along with a headband covering one eye. She knew he was from the leaf village due to the symbol etched into it.

The latter then quickly went to getting rid of the other ninja around him. Soon there were many different ninja on the grass and dirt, lying either unconscious or dead. The one that had saved her walked over to her and gently raised her from the ground. She still didn't have much energy in her, not enough to keep her eyes open. He held her close to his side to help support her weight and she gladly stayed quite—it was her way of asset the current situation. "Are you alright?" The man asked and she nodded. "You sure brought trouble to yourself." She nodded again, but didn't speak. He noticed, but didn't push. "What are you doing all the way out here?" No answer. "My name's Hatake Kakashi..." Again, she nodded. "Would you like to sit?"

She didn't feel like moving her head at all this time so she slumped and rest her head on Kakashi's shoulder. He didn't say anything else for a while, just carried her back to where his partner was. It took a while, but he finally got there. And when he did, his friend rushed over to him with wide eyes. He threw at him all sorts of question needing some clarification, but Kakashi just dismissed them with a wave. "She was being attacked by ninja, but she's alright now."

His friend nodded, but didn't settle his hands at his sides and sit down. He was way to competitive for that and tried to snatch the girl away from him, saying in a loud voice, "We should set her down! Youths these days are absolutely crazy!"

"Keep quiet," Kakashi warned while pressing the fragile girl in his arms closer to him and away from Gai. "She's asleep and is way too tired for you to be screaming in her ears." He kept his voice down too, to pass the message onto Gai. Thankfully, he listened.

"Okay, then let's put her down and make something suitable for her to sleep on." Gai said, again reaching for the girl. Kakashi didn't bother to retort in any way and handed her over. Gai laid the girl on the ground, making sure not to wake her. Kakashi went over to their huge bag of supplies and took out some bandages to cover the wounds on her arms and legs.

_Poor girl_, he thought. _I wonder what she did to deserve this._

"Hey, Kakashi," Gai whispered. "Where did you find her?"

"About a mile away from here; I was walking around for a while to get some fresh air when I heard something. I followed the voices and they lead me to her."

Gai looked down at the girl on the ground and made room for Kakashi to apply the medicines and bandages. "I wonder what she was doing on the outskirts of the Sand Village." He chuckled, but he didn't look amused. "She's lucky we were coming back from a mission nearby and weren't stalled along the way." He frowned. "She has no headband." he noticed. "I wonder if she wasn't able to pass exams, she looks of age. Or maybe she hadn't taken them yet." He mumbled the last part low enough for only him to hear. Kakashi wasn't paying attention to him, though. Kakashi sighed and announced it was still Gai's turn to stay up and watch for the rest of the night. After that, there was no noise out of the two. Kakashi fell asleep and Gai watched, both wondering about the girl that was just saved.

* * *

><p>When she woke up, she thought something was wrong. The man from the day before wasn't here, and there was another. Unlike the other man, this one had black hair and bushy brows. He also wore a green and orange jumpsuit outfit. Just like her, he was up.<p>

When he noticed she was awake, he said, relieved, "So you're alright, right?" She wanted to reply, but she couldn't quite properly speak at the moment. Again she relied on nodding. "Well, you're safe now. If anyone tries to approach you again, we'll take care of them." He shoved a white thumb to his chest and smiled so brightly, she had to cover her eyes. Then Gai remembered they hadn't introduced themselves yet. He reached out a hand and said, "My name's Might Gai, nice to meet you."

Akane cleared her throat before struggling to speak. "My n-name's H-Hoshiko Akane. N-nice to meet you, t-too, Might-san." She said, taking his hand.

"Hoshiko Akane, huh? It fits you."

Akane smiled, knowing he must be talking about her hair. "My m-mother named me th-that. She loved the co-ler red."

"That must not have been the only reason."

"You guys up already?" Gai and Akane turned to where Kakashi sat down to rest. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and yawned loudly. "So, your name's Akane?"

Akane nodded and stood up slowly to wipe the dirt from her pants. Even though she tried very hard to clean them, it stuck. She had a feeling they'd be hard to clean, since she's worn them for a long time. But she ignored that for the while, thinking she might as well thank them while they were both here. "U-um, th-thank you for help-ing me, Might-san, Hatake-san. I'm sorry for i-inconveniencing you, but I'll be g-going now." She stuttered at the long word, her tongue not making the proper movements in her mouth and she turned bright red, matching her hair.

Kakashi and Gai both frowned and said in synch, "Wait—!" They looked at each other for a while and finally Kakashi let the stubborn Gai speak. "You're leaving? Are you sure you want to? Those men might still be there, and if they are, how are you going to protect yourself?"

"Gai's right, Hoshiko-chan. You can't just go alone; you're not fully healed. You still have some bruises on your body and we'll still need to check if you hadn't broken a bone or anything. You can stick with us till we get to a village, preferable Konoha, if you don't mind. I know a good doctor that could help you. She's pretty stubborn…." Kakashi's lower lip went up, he looked nervous. "And a little violent, but she's good."

"U-um—"

"Yeah," Gai added. "And if she won't take you in, I'm sure Sakura will." Akane's troubled face changed to a perplexed one and Gai inserted, "She's a medical ninja; she's not a pro yet, but she's good."

Akane cleared her throat and said softly, "U-um, I have s-something to sa-y." Kakashi and Gai turned their attention to the girl and listened. "I c-can heal myself. I kn-know my ways with… medicine plants." She turned bright red from the staring

"That's excellent!" Kakashi and Gai both yelled. "But we still want to make sure you're okay." Gai nodded.

Defeated, Akane gave up on trying and thought about the positives. If she went with Kakashi and Gai, she'd be able to escape her capture and be safe. She'd also be able to rest easily for the night—though she had slept well last night, her body was still uncomfortable on the ground. She felt like it would really do her good. "Okay." Akane agreed. "I-I'll come with you t-two."

Kakashi and Gai nodded.

In the next hour, they had packed their belongings and set away from the Sand Village, and towards Konoha. The walk would be long—about three or two days—but Akane tried her best not to slow them down. But by the time they had reached Konoha, Akane was exhausted. She felt she wouldn't be able to walk anymore, but she strained her feet to keep walking and keep their balance.

Before she could comment on the village inside, one of the two ninja at the gates noticed Kakashi and Gai and spoke out to them. "Well, you guys are early." The responsible one of the two, Izumo, said. He turned his visible eye towards Akane, but his companion, Kotetsu, beat him to it.

"Who's this?" Kotetsu asked, curiosity peeking out from in him.

"Hoshiko Akane-chan. She's here to see Yuki."

"What happened?" Izumo asked.

Gai nodded towards Kakashi, "I'll go report to the Hokage and you take her to the hospital."

Kotetsu frowned, "At least tell us what happened before then." Gai ignored him and walked on to the big building where the Hokage was.

Izumo, annoyed, snapped, "They'll tell us later. Let them do their job first." Kakashi nodded. Izumo waved them good bye and Kotetsu bid them good bye too.

"Do-does everyone here c-cover their eyes?" Akane asked, turning a little to look Kakashi in the eye. She then looked behind them, to Kotetsu and Izumo fighting.

Kakashi laughed at her comment and said, "No, not everybody. By the way, that's Kotetsu and Izumo. Izumo is the one with his eye covered, and the other, with the bandage over his nose, is Kotetsu."

"Th-they act like brothers," Akane commented. Kakashi studied her from the corner of his eye, thinking, _what did she do to get into so much trouble? She's seems to nice and fragile, how can a girl like this bring problems to herself? She even _looks_ innocent._

Akane felt someone's eyes on her, and when she turned, she was surprised to see a bunch of kids walking together, all staring at _her_. She felt her cheeks flush a deep rosy color, and turned away. She whispered to Kakashi, "There are people s-staring at me." She rubbed her sore legs to try and take the attention off her, but that wasn't doing her any good.

Kakashi turned to look at her, she looked so worried. _What's made her like this?_ She flicked her eyes back to the group of kids and Kakashi understood. "Don't worry," he assured. "They're just staring because they're wondering who you are. Why don't you go introduce yourself?"

"A-are you sure?" Akane's light brown eyes slowly made their way to the kids, and stopped at a pair of blue eyes. _What pretty eyes._ "Wh-who are those people?" She turned away, bright purple. _He was staring. He was staring._

Kakashi could feel her discomfort—it was as thick as noodles. He grabbed her arm and gave her a small push towards a big white building. The push hurt her a little, but only because of her injuries. She flinched, and a pair of blue eyes also flinched. She dug her teeth into her lip, trying to hide the pain and keep from falling down.

"Go inside and ask for Yuki, alright? Sakura is right there, but she's probably on her break." He said, pointing towards the kids. Akane didn't look over to where he was pointing, too embarrassed to look. Kakashi didn't force her, either. "Um, why don't you just go inside and ask for Yuki and if she's busy, ask for someone else. Tell them you're here on Kakashi's request and you may be injured."

Akane nodded and began walking towards the doors, not turning around to see Kakashi walk over to the kids; she didn't even notice the blue eyes still watching her. She all of a sudden felt very nervous. She didn't know anyone here and felt like she was intruding. She grabbed the knob and pulled open the door, trying to prepare herself and think of what to say again.

At the desk sat a woman in his mid 20's. She had short purple hair that was a few inches longer than Akane's. When the said girl was about to speak, the other spoke before her. "How may I help you?" She sounded bored, but looked a little angry. Akane became more nervous.

"I-I'm looking for someone. I c-came here under H-Hatake-san's request because I m-may be in-injured."

The lady smirked, "You sure can't talk properly, can you?"

"U-um, I-I was saying. I'm looking for—" A slam on the table made Akane stop talking. She looked up to see another pair of blue eyes watching her, sternly. "I-Is there something wr-ong?"

"Yes, _of course_ there is something wrong! Look at you! You can't talk properly, and how many times are you going to repeat yourself? That's annoying! Just spit it out; who are you looking for?"

Akane nodded, "A person named Yuki."

"Yuki who?" the other snapped.

Akane began playing with the hem of her poufy pants from all the nervousness. "I-I don't know, miss."

She let out a loud sigh and turned in her chair before getting up. She picked up a phone and said into the receiver, "Someone take my shift, I have to go." She didn't wait for a reply, just went out from behind the reception desk and began walking down a hall. Akane didn't know what to do, but she felt she should follow. She sped up when the woman in front of her turned around to roll her eyes at her slowness. She mumbled something about Kakashi under her breath, but Akane didn't hear—she was too busy trying to speed-walk in the less painful way. "In case you still don't know…" the woman started. "I'm Yuki."

Akane's eyes bulged from their sockets. _I hope she isn't. She seems so mean._ "R-really?" Akane asked.

"What a stupid question." Yuki spat. "Are you trying to say I don't know who I am?"

Before Akane could try to say anything else, Yuki stopped at a pair of steel doors and walked inside. Akane followed. Beyond the doors was a small room, but it bigger than the others they had passed. It didn't look like a place a patient would stay due to the lack of beds and curtains. There were only desks, cabinets and chairs and a big window on one side that let in tons of light. Akane assumed it must be some kind of office of hers. "Let's check you out. Now, do you feel any pain?" Akane nodded. "Sit down," Yuki pulled up a chair for her to sit and took another for herself. Akane collapsed onto the chair, leaning into it for some relief. "Where does it hurt?" She pointed to the parts of her body where she thought the pain was coming from and let the older doctor touch her and heal her with her hands.

She was amazed at how skilled she was, and slightly jealous of her capabilities. She tried to remember the last time she had used ninjutsu, but nothing came to mind. Without her consent, she let out a gasp. Yuki looked up and asked, "What's wrong?"

Akane flushed red, looking into her eyes and thinking of the staring boy and his friends outside. "N-nothing. I was just wondering…"

"Wondering what?" Yuki sounded annoyed. "Can't you at least finish your sentences?"

Akane nodded. "I've ne-ver seen anyone o-other than one person use Medical n-ninjutsu before. It looks c-cool."

"Are you serious? And who is this person?" Yuki reached over to a cabinet and took out a bottle of rubbing alcohol. She dripped some onto a towel and rubbed that on Akane's wounds and blew on them to soothe the stinging. She looked up out of annoyance when she didn't reply. "Hello?"

Akane regained some self-control and stumbled over the next words. "My brother, but we're not related."

"Then how is he your brother?" Yuki narrowed her eyes, enjoying her company some more.

"I just call him that."

Yuki rolled her eyes, "Whatever." There was a knock on the door. "Who's there?" Yuki yelled.

"Me." came Kakashi's voice. "Is Hoshiko-chan there?"

"I don't know if that's her name, come and check for yourself. I'm not asking." Kakashi rolled open the door and walked inside. Behind him were a pair of other kids—the ones who were watching Akane before. "No!" Yuki cried. "Why do you have to bring me more people? I'm only doing this girl; nobody else."

Kakashi put up his hands in surrender, "Don't worry, they're not here for you." He turned to Akane, "Hey, Hoshiko-chan, I'd like you to meet some people."

Akane turned around and started, "O-okay. Who—?" She stopped herself mid-sentence when she saw a pair of crystal blue eyes. Her own then widened and she blushed. _He's still staring._

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><p><strong>Song of the Day: In the Dark by Dev<strong>

**A/N:**

**I hope you liked it! And if you really like this and you've watched or read Fairy Tail, please check out my other story, Seconds in Between! I would really appreciate that!**

**Please leave a review, add this story to your alerts or anything. The more reviews I get, the faster the second chapter will come out!**

**Yuki: Just shut up.**

**Oh, no need to be so mean! Who made you like this?**

**Yuki: You did, stupid!**

**Sarcasm, dude! :P**

**Akane: P-please read the next ch-chapter when it comes out.**

**Yuki: And why did you make her like that? That stuttering is annoying.**

**Akane: I'm sorry.**

**Hey, don't apologize! Yuki should apologize!**

**Yuki: Bye!**

**Hey, that's my line! Bye, see y'all next time!**


	2. Scars, Weapons and Flowers

**A/N:**

**Sorry about the late update! Really, really sorry! But I hope this chapter will make up for it! It's not long (only five pages) but it has a strange… happening. I didn't even plan to write it, but when it came out, it sort of fit. My little Akane-chan has many secrets and she's not just a shy girl! And also my little Yuki—**

**Yuki: Who the hell are you calling 'little'?**

**I love you, Yuki!**

**Yuki: Whatever.**

**So, I hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer:**

**I do not own any character from the Naruto show because they are fully Masashi Kishimoto's property! Akane and Yuki, however, are MINE and I LOVE them!**

**Akane: *blush* A-awe, thanks.**

**Yuki: Keep it down, Skittles-san.**

**Hai, hai, my little Yuki-chan! So, read on!**

**Yuki: *glare***

* * *

><p>Previously on Eternal<p>

There was a knock on the door. "Who's there?" Yuki yelled.

"Me." Came Kakashi's voice. "Is Hoshiko-chan there?"

"I don't know if that's her name, come and check for yourself. I'm not asking." Kakashi rolled open the door and walked inside. Behind him were a pair of other kids—the ones who were watching Akane before. "No!" Yuki cried. "Why do you have to bring me more people? I'm only doing this girl; nobody else."

Kakashi put up his hands in surrender, "Don't worry, they're not here for you." He turned to Akane, "Hey, Hoshiko-chan, I'd like you to meet some people."

Akane turned around and started, "O-okay. Who—?" She stopped herself mid-sentence when she saw a pair of crystal blue eyes. Her own then widened and she blushed. _He's still staring._

Eternal

Chapter 2: Scars, Weapons and Flowers

Yuki clicked her tongue and stretched her stiff muscles in her chair, he face looking very much annoyed. "Why'd you bring _that_ one, too?" Her dull eyes swiped over one specific boy in the room who was just about to speak. "Now I have two really annoying brats in my room." She saw his mouth open again, his gaze directed at Akane, and pulled the little girl to face her. "Don't you even think about talking, Uzumaki- baka." She reached into her shelf and took out some cotton balls to disinfect her wounds.

Kakashi laughed. "Well, you haven't changed at all."

Yuki rolled her eyes, "Aren't you the smartest peanut in the turd?"(1*) Kakashi smiled, but Yuki didn't. "Now, leave. Let me finish her up here and then you can continue." She eyed everyone in the room carefully and motioned to the door with her foot. "Get!" She called. The others obeyed her command and stepped outside. Kakashi and the others waited patiently whilst Yuki finished inside. "So, you're new here, right?" Akane nodded. "Then why do you have so many friends?"

"Didn't I say that in the beginning?" Kakashi's voice called from the hallway.

"And didn't I tell you to leave?"

Yuki could hear the smirk in Kakashi's voice when he said, "I'm outside."

"So, little Akane Hoshiko-chan…" Yuki turned the latter's face to look her in the eyes. "Look people in the eye when they talk to you, you hear me?" Akane nodded furiously, hurting at the sudden movement. Yuki eyed her slowly, noticing her straighten her back and flinch from the sharp contact of her back to the chair. The doctor lifted her eyebrow. "Take off your clothes."

"W-what?" Akane flushed red. She eyed the partly open door.

Yuki smirked and eyed the door too. "Hey, Kakashi, close the damn door." He closed the door. The only thing that could be heard then was Akane's deep breathing and Yuki's footsteps. She walked over to a wall and pulled back a big, white curtain, revealing a door. She opened it, showing a small bed, the room white. She motioned for Akane to follow her. When she noticed Akane not closing the door, she whined, "Hey, don't be like that idiot outside; close the door after yourself."

"So-sorry." With a turn, she closed the door. "U-um, what are we d-doing here?" She cautiously asked, wanting to be smaller than before.

"Undressing you, of course." Yuki looked to Akane, who did not believe she could say it so calmly. Yuki turned and leaned against the wall, folding a slim, long leg against another. She let out a breath and folded her arms, then looked up. "What do you have on your back?"

Akane's eyes widened a little, but she looked down to hide it. "N-nothing."

Yuki walked up to the bed, her steps echoing a little louder than before. She stomped a sandal, rubbing her eyes. "Take off your shirt."

"U-um, I don't—"

"Take it off!" Yuki screamed. She breathed through her nose a few times, calming herself. "I need to see something." Akane looked down, but she moved to take her shirt off. She slowly lifted the teal fabric from her body, the v-neck making the process faster. She dropped it on the floor, covering her top body. Yuki walked up to her, spinning her around so she could see her back. "Oo," She said. She slowly ran her hands over the wound, not adding any pressure. "This looks bad." Her normally fierce eyes softened and she sighed. "What happened?"

"I-I—" Akane threw the words out, her glasses falling a length down her nose.

She shivered under Yuki's hand, who twirled her around. The ends of Akane's eyes were drooping, salty liquid coming from the corners. Her breathing quickened and turned into a heart wrenching sob. "H-hey-!" Yuki softly said, grabbing the girl and pulling her into an awkward embrace. "It's alright, you don't have to tell me," she cooed. "Everything's going to be okay."

A small knock on the door shifted her attention to the shut door. "Yuki?" called Kakashi. In the background, Yuki could hear the sounds of steps and questions. "Is something wrong? Is somebody crying?"

"Not now, Kakashi, there are naked women here." Kakashi laughed from behind the door. Yuki turned back to Akane, slowly pushing her away from her tear stained doctor gown. "Hey," Yuki whispered. "It's time to go." Akane still shook, but she didn't move. Yuki sighed, letting go of her and picking up her shirt from the white tiles beneath her sandals. Yuki re-dressed Akane and walked over to a table to grab a few tissues. She handed them to Akane, but the girl wasn't paying attention. "I'm not going to spoil you." Yuki whispered to her. She walked over to the door and turned the knob. "Kakashi."

The ninja sneaked a peak past her, say the distraught figure of Akane and gasped. "What's going on?" He instantly turned a playful mask towards Yuki and asked, "What did you say to her?"

From behind him, a blond haired boy and pink haired girl also stole a glance. They both yelled, "What happened?" at the same time.

Yuki tossed them a pissed look and practically shouted, "Lower your voices, Sakura, Naruto!" The kids snorted and Akane froze.

She wiped her now wide eyes with the quarter sleeve of her shirt, but her breathing was still close to that of a pant. She walked over to another small table and grabbed a metallic jar of utensils. She picked up one of the pencils inside, hid it behind her back and slowly walked over to the door. From the increasing sound of fast breathing, everyone's eyes turned to her. Kakashi was about to speak up when Akane held the pencil out, the speed and strength accidentally stabbing Yuki in the appendix with the tip of the pencil. She bled from the wound, both hers and Akane's eyes wide open.

"What the hell did you do that for?" Yuki shouted. "And after I was all nice to you too!" She pressed the blood stained hole and glared at Akane, leaning forward and trying to breath. Her hands glowed green.

The shivering girl gaped, "I-I didn't mean to…" Her eyes watered again, making her eyesight worsen even with the glasses on. Kakashi looked from Yuki to Akane and back again. The kids around them stood quiet, mouth also open in shock. "I j-just wanted to l-leave."

"And you took a fucking _pencil_ with you?" Yuki took her hand of the wound and charged at the retreating red-haired girl. Everyone else, as if waking from a trance, quickly ran after the two. Part of them ran to restrain Yuki and her ragging claws, whilst the others ran-walked after Akane to calm her. And they were ordered, by Kakashi, not to harm or touch her in any way.

"I didn't mean to—" Her eyes enlarged a total of two sizes when she spotted those running after her—everyone. She turned back and ran out of the small room, into Yuki's office and out the door. The distance between her and Yuki was, however too small that she couldn't close the door behind her. She increased her speed, holding her glasses and lifting her feet high so they wouldn't fall. She didn't even dare to turn around, just kept running.

Suddenly, something popped in front of her; a few hundred clones. _That boy,_ she thought. "Hey, hold up." He held up his hands, as if in defeat. "I don't want to hurt you." He eyed the pencil still in her arm, now bloody. "Well, I can't." He partly laughed, but stopped when he saw her expression: fear.

The others watched from behind her. "G-get away!" With vibrating hands, she held up the pencil. "I'm l-leaving so let me p-past!" The previous numb pain in her back suddenly sparked with the intensity of a jumping elephant and she collapsed to the ground. Naruto reached down to help her up, but she thrust the pencil into his hand, making his clone disappear.

He twitched, "That would have hurt."

"P-please," her soft voice pleaded, "leave me a-alone—" Her voice softened. "Not you, pl-please, not y-you." Darkness folded around her and her breathing finally slowed. Everyone behind her then moved to help her up.

Naruto stood frozen over her unconscious body, though. He blinked a few times, wondering what he had done wrong to get himself hated by her. He thought he knew—his personality. But then again, he hadn't even spoken much to her. He frowned. "What did I do?"

"Well, what are you waiting for? Pick her up!" yelled the voice of Yuki.

"And here I thought you were angry at her."

"Who said I'm not angry?" She punched Kakashi's arm, who just laughed. She sighed and sounded sympathetic when she continued, "The girl has been through a lot. She has a scar—" She stopped herself, knowing Akane probably wouldn't want that blabbed to others. She coughed so they wouldn't notice, but they did, however they didn't push for answers. "I don't want to waste my anger right now. But if she does it again, I won't go so easy on her."

"Who says that was easy?" Kakashi joked.

"Why can't you be so lively when you're around us?" Sakura quietly questioned. She eyed Yuki's wound, relived there was no cut. "No wonder you could run so fast."

"Huh?" Naruto asked.

"You're so slow." A blonde girl said, walking up to Akane on the ground. "Yuki healed herself, duhh." She turned to Yuki, who was now kneeling next to her. "What do we do with her?"

"Her name is Akane." Kakashi corrected.

"Take Hoshiko-san to my room." The blonde nodded, hauling her up with the help of a bushy-browed black haired boy.

Bushy-brow spoke up quietly, "This girl has so much energetic youth in her, and don't you guys think so?"

"Yeah, yeah." The blonde muttered, trailing behind the other oddly quiet kids—minus one person (2*).

"You're not coming?" Yuki asked Kakashi.

He looked up at her and shook his head. "I'm going to go to the Hokage and see if Gai is still there."

"Whatever." Yuki called, waving a farewell whilst walking away. "You owe me." She yelled when passing a corner. Kakashi nodded, yawning and walking away.

* * *

><p>"I-I'm sorry about b-before." Akane said, getting into a kowtow to apologize.<p>

Yuki waved her apology away with a hand. "It's alright," she informed. "I'll take it as pay back for making you cry."

"You d-didn't make—"

Yuki narrowed her eyes, "Don't make me change my mind."

Akane nodded, getting up and swallowing hard. She looked around at the group of kids around her and forced a smile. "S-sorry about before."

"It's alright!" called the pink haired girl. "By the way, my name's Sakura, which you probably already know." She pointed to the blond, "And you probably already know Naruto." Akane shivered, but nodded. She avoided his gaze and gladly smiled at the others. Sakura pointed to a black haired 'Akane-chan' (3*), a boy eating chips and then another blonde. "This is Hinata, Choji and Ino. And that's Lee—" Bushy-brow nodded "—well, you know everyone now. And you're…" She put a finger to her chin, trying to remember.

"H-hoshiko Akane-chan… ne?" Hinata asked, looking away from her glance. Akane nodded.

From the side, Yuki snorted. They all turned to her, questions written on their faces. "What?" She asked. "I was just thinking how old you guys are acting; so _mature_." Nobody replied. "Okay, now go!"

They all nodded a goodbye and walked out. Once outside the hospital, they all stopped around the small red haired girl. "Sorry, Akane-chan," Lee said. "But we have to go train."

Akane nodded, but Sakura came up with an idea. "Why don't you come with us? You're a ninja too, right?"

Akane looked down and shook her tiny head. "N-no." she said

"Oh, well… would you like to become one?"

"I c-can't do any n-ninjutsu… or an-anything."

Lee smiled a reassuring smile, "Don't worry. I also can't, but that's why I do physical fighting."

"I-I think I'll st-stick with m-medicine."

Sakura then smiled, "So you're a medical ninja?"

Akane shook her head. "N-no; I use p-plants. I l-love flowers."

Ino perked up, "I own a flower shop." She pointed to Choji, "We're not going to practice yet—we're going to eat something. How about, after that and before practice, I show you around my shop." Akane nodded slowly, waiting to see if she would say anything else. "If you want, you could work there too."

Choji swallowed a chip and suggested, "You could even learn something new."

"Yeah," Sakura shouted, grabbing Akane's hands. "And we could all visit, right, Naruto?"

She turned to the blond, who shook his head. "Sorry, but I can't. I think I'll be busy with training with the Pervy Sage." Sakura nodded.

"You know," Ino said. "You don't seem like a shy person, like Hinata here."

Akane and Hinata flushed. "I-I'm not shy." Akane said.

Sakura lifted a brow, "Then why do you stutter and blush a lot?"

Ino rolled her eyes, "Listen here, Billboard Brow, she isn't _always _blushing."

They glared at each other, talking small steps closer. "Shut up, Ino Pig, nobody asked for _your _opinion!"

"Oh, be quiet."

Akane whispered, "They m-made me this way." Hinata and Naruto looked at her questioningly. The tiny girl noticed their stares and quickly asked, "W-what?"

"Nothing," Naruto shouted, scratching the back of his head and smiling. Hinata shook her head and looked down before stealing one at Naruto.

Ino grabbed Akane's hand, smiling at Sakura. "Let's go, Akane-chan."

"O-okay."

* * *

><p><strong>Song of the Day: Cosmic Love by Florence + the Machine<strong>

**A/N:**

**1*: If you didn't notice, this is from Bloodhound Gang's song called Three Point One Four. So, it is NOT mine! I do not claim it as my own!**

**2* and 3*: In case you didn't catch this, I was talking about Hinata.**

**That whole pencil scene was totally not in plan, like I said before. Well, I hope you liked it because I know I did!**

**Hidan: You sadist.**

**Where in the hell did you come from?**

**Hidan: Your fucking keyboard**

**… That's not even possible.**

**Hidan: Bitch, you were the one who wrote my fucking dialogue!**

**Deidara: What a big word for you, Hidan! :O**

**Hidan: Shut up, blonde.**

**Where are you guys coming from? You're not even in the story!**

**Tobi: Anna-chan, can I be in your story? *shows puppy-dog eyes***

**Awe, yes! I'll make extra chapters with the Akatsuki in it.**

**Tobi: Yay!**

**But I'll need some help with the personalities… pm me or leave a comment if you'd like to write it with me!**

**Hidan: Nobody will help you, bitch.**

**Watch your language, Tobi is here.**

**Tobi: :D**

**So, I hope you like it and…**

**Akane: …**

**Akane-chan… Onegai? For your okasan?**

**Akane: F-fine. P-please review and y-you'll get cookies!**

**Naruto: Why do you hate me? ****L**

**Akane: I-I don't h-hate you.**

**You guys are making this long. -_- Okay, please review, and don't forget to mention that extra chapter if you're interested! See ya later!**


	3. Medicine Plants Go Well With Training

**A/N:**

**To the people that read Seconds in Between: sorry I'm not updating. I just… don't want to continue. This story seems more interesting to write and just… I'll stop because I say something stupid.**

**Sorry for the previous chapters—I messed up with the honorifics! ~**

**I want to apologize in advance about the length of the chapter and the seemingly rushed scenes. I just wanted to post this up since I had the time and such that is needed for me. I hope you like it anyway~**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Naruto characters; they all belong to Masashi Kishimoto. The only characters that belong to me are Akane-chan and Yuki-chan. ^^ Hope you enjoy~**

* * *

><p>Previously on Eternal<p>

Akane shook her head. "N-no; I use p-plants. I l-love flowers."

Ino perked up, "I own a flower shop." She pointed to Choji, "We're not going to practice yet—we're going to eat something. How about, after that and before practice, I show you around my shop." Akane nodded slowly, waiting to see if she would say anything else. "If you want, you could work there too."

Choji swallowed a chip and suggested, "You could even learn something new."

"Yeah," Sakura shouted, grabbing Akane's hands. "And we could all visit, right, Naruto?"

She turned to the blond, who shook his head. "Sorry, but I can't. I think I'll be busy with training with the Pervy Sage." Sakura nodded.

"You know," Ino said. "You don't seem like a shy person, like Hinata here."

Akane and Hinata flushed. "I-I'm not shy." Akane said.

Sakura lifted a brow, "Then why do you stutter and blush a lot?"

Ino rolled her eyes, "Listen here, Billboard Brow, she isn't _always _blushing."

They glared at each other, talking small steps closer. "Shut up, Ino Pig, nobody asked for _your _opinion!"

"Oh, be quiet."

Akane whispered, "They m-made me this way." Hinata and Naruto looked at her questioningly. The tiny girl noticed their stares and quickly asked, "W-what?"

"Nothing," Naruto shouted, scratching the back of his head and smiling. Hinata shook her head and looked down before stealing one at Naruto.

Ino grabbed Akane's hand, smiling at Sakura. "Let's go, Akane-chan."

"O-okay."

Eternal

Chapter 3: Medicine Plants Go Well With Training but Not Food

Akane sat in a chair, twiddling her fingers. Ino and Choji were both digging in, Choji being the savage of the trio. "Pass the steak," he said after swallowing a bite. Akane stared wide eyed at him as Ino took two more, one for him and one for her.

"Akane, aren't you going to eat some?" she asks, grabbing her bowl of rice.

"U-Um…, s-should I?"

Choji and Ino laughed. "Yes; you should. Unless you want me to eat them all."

Ino hit his hand with her chopsticks. "Hey you, save some for her, will ya?" He sighed in defeat, but obliged.

Akane picked up her chopsticks and frowned. "I d-don't know how to use this..."

Right when Ino was about to demonstrate for her, a passing customer quickly shuffled next to Akane and grabbed her hand. "Let me teach you, wondrous lady."

Akane froze, turning red from the touch, but she didn't say anything. The one to speak up was Choji. "Hey, what are you doing here, Hiroto?" There was a slightly harsh tone in his words, even for him.

"Likewise, my friend—what are you doing here with two beautiful ladies?" He winked at the girls, making Akane turn more red and Ino grin. Choji ignored him and went back to his eating, making the stranger smirk. "Fat ass…"

At that, Choji did respond. His eyes seemed to hold the presence of a demon for a while as his head shot up and his eyes locked with his enemies'. His voice was slow and in monotone when he asked, "What… did you just call me?"

Ino stood up and Hiroto a look, speaking to Choji. "Just ignore him, Choji. Hiroto, you should leave him alone, too." Choji took one last look at Hiroto before continuing eating.

Hiroto shrugged. "Ah, it's not my fault all he does is eat." He smirked and turned back to Akane. "Hello there, beautiful. Do you need help with these chopsticks?"

Completely red, Akane was speechless. She's never been called beautiful by a guy before, better yet a stranger. Ino answered for her. "She needs help, but I doubt you'd be of any help to her."

Hiroto looked hurt. "That's harsh, Ino. I thought I could just help a maiden in need." He grinned and turned back to Akane. "What's your name?"

"A-Akane." She made out.

He smiled. "What a nice name—it suits you."

"T-Thank you…" she turned away from him; wondering if would be rude to pull her hand from his.

"Hey, let her eat, will you?"

Hiroto ignored Ino's request and instead pulled up a chair from another table, still holding Akane's hand. "Why don't I show you, then?" he grinned, moving her fingers to fit around the chopsticks properly. "This is how you hold the chopsticks and this…" he moved her hand to the steak, picking it up skillfully. "Is how you lift food. Now, open up."

Ino shook her head at the two. "Hey, do you mind?"

"No, I don't." Hiroto said, slicing the meat with his chopsticks and grabbing a piece for her to eat. "Here…" he turned to her, waiting for her to open her mouth. But she didn't. She sat there quietly, turning different shades of embarrassment.

"Hiroto… leave her alone." Choji warned.

"I agree with Choji; you shouldn't do that to her."

"Oh, come on. It's not like anyone here minds that much."

"Actually, we do." Ino and Choji said at the same time.

Hiroto sighed, defeated. "Fine, fine. I'll leave." He turns to Akane again and kisses her hand. "Goodbye, dear Akane. And goodbye to you, too Ino." He kissed her hand too and turned to Choji, said nothing then left.

Ino rolls her eyes, unfazed by the skilled flirt—Akane, however, was anything _but. _She couldn't stop blushing and she only turned darker when she thought of him. "Just eat, Akane." Ino reminded her, noticing her red face. Akane nodded, embarrassed she saw.

After a long while of eating, Akane and Ino parted from Choji, who said he needed to go training. They let him go and headed straight to Ino's shop. "W-What kind of flowers d-do you have?" she asked her after a long silence. The shop was of decent size—not too big and not too small. It held all sorts of plants and flowers, which, after realizing, made Akane feel kind of dumb.

"All sorts," Ino said, muffling a laugh with her hand.

The titian-haired blushed and asked again, rephrasing. "D-Do you have anything that's u-used for m-medicine—say, Aloe V-Vera?"

"Oh, Aloe Vera, I know that plant," Ino said with a smile. She walked ahead, her pace faster than Akane's. She walked up to a small shelf in the farthest corner of the store, standing on the chair to reach the top. She wiggled her finger to reach the pot of Aloe Vera and hopped down, walking up to Akane to hand it to her. "Here you go," she said. "Wait, do you need more?" she asked her, ready to get some more.

Akane blushed and shook her head. "N-No, I'm fine. I don't w-want to make you reach for another."

Ino smiled and waved a hand. "It's alright, I don't mind." They smiled at each other, the sun coming in through the window and shining at them both.

Later that day, after Ino had showed her every inch of her shop, the two went to meet up with the others for practice. 'The others' consisted of Choji, Shikamaru and Asuma Sarutobi. They were all in the forest where they hadn't waited on them to start training. "Good job, guys," Asuma told Shikamaru and Choji, smoking his cigarette. When he noticed the two girls, he turned. "Hey there Ino… who's that you've got with you?"

Choji and Shikamaru both turned when they heard Asuma talk. They both put their hands down, along with their weapons and looked at Akane. Choji held a smile on his face whilst Shikamaru was the same as always—placid and indifferent(1*). "Akane-san?" Shikamaru said at the same moment Choji addressed her.

Akane turned to the two ninja and nodded. "M-My name is Hoshiko Akane."

"Akane-san? Nice to meet you, I'm Asuma." Asuma said, nodding his head when she bowed. As for Ino, he frowned. "You're late."

"Sorry, I was showing her around and got sidetracked." She smiled nervously at her Sensei but then grinned. "I was hoping we could show Akane-chan some moves. Could we?" She gave Asuma big eyes, pleading eyes.

He sighed. "I don't see any harm in doing that."

"R-Really? Thank You, A-Asuma-san." He shook his head at her, meaning it wasn't such a big deal.

For half the day Asuma and the others had demonstrated some ninja skills, some of which she had already seen but kept quiet about. Akane admired all the moves and made them believe she thought they were amazing when in reality she was sulking—knowing she would never be able to do that. However, she knew she could do what Lee had said—physical fighting. _I'm too weak, _she had convinced herself after a long whiles thought.

"Are you okay going on alone?" Ino asked her, looking her in the eyes.

The red haired nodded. "I'm f-fine, I-Ino-san—"

"Just Ino, please." The blonde smiled at her.

"Ino… I'll j-just… have to g-go and ask H-Hatake-san where I can stay for the night." Ino wanted to tell her she could stay with her but the look on the girls face was that of a baby cub wanting to do something for herself, be a bigger person for the moment. She smiled at her and waved, biding her goodbye. Akane waved back and turned, headed for anywhere.

* * *

><p><strong>Song of the Day: Fiction Backwards by Avenged Sevenfold<br>**

**A/N:**

**1*: I hope I got that correct…**

**Before I forget... I didn't edit this or re-read so if there are any typos, please PM and I'll fix them. Thanks.  
><strong>

**The title sucks… sorry. I'm also sorry if the chapter seems rushed because… it is. I hope you guys enjoyed it anyway~ Um… oh, yeah. I'll be taking suggestions for who she should meet on the way to seeing Kakashi, or perhaps she doesn't see him and someone else offers her a place for the night? I know what I would do but I'm not so sure you guys would like it… so just give me that and an explanation of why I should do that and what will happen. :D I hope you guys don't think that's too much work… v.v**

**So, sorry for the late update and please review and subscribe this story! xD Thanks! See ya next chapter!**


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